Why Accommodation Matters More Than You Think
I spent a ridiculous amount of time choosing accommodation for this trip.
Seriously.
At some point I was comparing hotels, cabins and Airbnbs for hours every evening.
The challenge was finding something in the middle.
Costa Rica is not a cheap destination. I didn’t need luxury resorts everywhere, but I also wasn’t interested in spending my honeymoon sharing a room with every insect species found in Central America.
So my goal was simple: clean, comfortable accommodation in a good location without completely destroying the budget.Because we were renting a car, I wasn’t too concerned about staying directly in city centres.
But I had two non-negotiable requirements:
Free parking and air conditioning.
In fact, some of my favourite places ended up being slightly outside town. If you’re travelling by shuttle buses instead of driving, I would probably prioritise location much more carefully.
Looking back, I don’t regret the time I spent researching.
These are the places we stayed and whether I would choose them again.
Hilton Garden Inn San José Airport City Mall
Our Jungle Airbnb Near Playa Negra in Puerto Viejo
Since we were arriving around 9 p.m. and collecting our rental car the following morning, I wanted something easy.
No driving in a completely unfamiliar country at night.
No trying to find an Airbnb address after a long international flight.
Just a comfortable bed and a stress-free start to the trip.
That’s why I booked the Hilton Garden Inn near the airport.
I also found a surprisingly good deal through Booking.com, which made the decision even easier.
Another reason was the location. The hotel is directly connected to City Mall, one of the largest shopping centres in the area. After checking in, we simply walked downstairs and immediately found restaurants and shops without needing a taxi or another transfer.
The hotel also offered a free airport shuttle, which made arrival very easy. To be honest, almost every hotel around the airport seems to offer shuttle service, but having it organised in advance removed one more thing from my planning list.
The room was exactly what I expected from a Hilton: clean, comfortable and easy.
No surprises.
Which was exactly what I wanted on the first night.
The only thing I didn’t love was discovering that City Mall doesn’t open particularly early in the morning.
Thanks to the time difference, we were awake around 4 a.m. and ready to start our day long before anything around us was actually open.
Still, that’s hardly the hotel’s fault.
My Rating 9/10
Simple. Comfortable. Stress-free.
Exactly what we needed.
If I had to book one accommodation from the entire trip again tomorrow, this would probably be the winner.
The apartment was located only a few minutes’ walk from Playa Negra, surrounded by tropical vegetation and jungle sounds everywhere.
And on our very first morning?
Monkeys. Actual monkeys.
That was the moment when the trip really started feeling like Costa Rica.
The apartment itself was beautiful. A wooden house surrounded by a lovely garden, with its own private pool, kitchen and free parking.What surprised me most was how comfortable everything felt despite being surrounded by jungle.
No mosquito and bug invasion.No wildlife attempting to move into the bedroom. There were a few ants here and there, but nothing problematic.
The internet worked perfectly and the whole property felt very safe because the apartment was located within the grounds of the owner’s main house.
The only thing I wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about?The bathroom.Technically it was private.But the bathroom ceiling was basically connected to the ceiling of the bedroom.Let’s just say that newly married couples may discover they know each other even better by the end of the stay.
I’ll leave it at that.
My Rating10/10
Monkeys. Private pool. Playa Negra. Jungle atmosphere. Exactly what I imagined Costa Rica would feel like.
Cabañas del Río in La Fortuna
Kina Mira Suites in Playa Grande
La Fortuna ended up being one of my favourite destinations in Costa Rica, and this accommodation definitely helped.
I chose Cabañas del Río because it offered exactly what I was looking for: a quiet place close to town, free parking, a kitchen and easy access to all the activities around Arenal.
At first, I thought we might even walk into town occasionally.
We never did.
Once you have a rental car in Costa Rica, walking plans tend to disappear very quickly.
The cabins themselves were very simple mostly for families but comfortable, and having a kitchen was something I appreciated throughout the trip. But the real highlight was the wildlife.
Every morning, the owner placed fruit outside for the birds, and within minutes the area would fill with activity. Toucans, colourful tropical birds and species I couldn’t even identify would suddenly appear while we were drinking our morning coffee.
There was something incredibly relaxing about starting the day that way.
As if that wasn’t enough, the property also included a guided night walk.
Normally this would be a separate paid activity elsewhere in Costa Rica, but here it was included in the stay.We spent the evening searching for frogs, insects and other wildlife and ended up spotting far more than I expected.For me, that was a huge bonus.
What I Loved
Incredible birdlife every morning.
Free night walk included. Quiet surroundings. Free parking. Kitchen facilities. Very close to La Fortuna.
What I Didn’t Love
Honestly, not much.The cabins were very simple and that was exactly what we booked.
My Rating. 9/10
Toucans with morning coffee.That’s already difficult to beat.
Our final major stop was Playa Grande in Guanacaste.
The property was beautiful. A large pool in the middle, rooms surrounding it and wildlife appearing daily.
The best part?
The howler monkeys.
Every morning we would wake up and hear them before we saw them.
Then we’d look outside and discover entire groups moving through the trees right next to our room.
The room itself was comfortable and spacious, and although the outdoor shared kitchen concept isn’t for everyone, I actually liked it.
It created a relaxed atmosphere where guests could cook, eat and exchange stories.The location was also excellent for exploring Playa Grande and the surrounding beaches.
The only thing I wasn’t particularly fond of was the bathroom window, which opened towards the communal kitchen area.
Let’s just say privacy occasionally became more theoretical than practical.Apart from that, I genuinely enjoyed the stay.
What I Loved
Howler monkeys outside the room. Beautiful pool area. Free parking.
What I Didn’t Love
Slightly limited bathroom privacy
My Rating 9/10
One Final Night Before Flying Home
Before our flight home, we returned to the Alajuela town for one final night.
This time we booked a very simple and inexpensive Airbnb because we only needed a place to sleep for a few hours before heading to the airport the next morning.At that point, I wasn’t looking for a swimming pool, a beautiful view or tropical gardens.
I was looking for one thing:
A bed.
It was clean, practical, affordable and perfectly adequate for a single night before an early flight.Sometimes that’s all you need.
What I Learned About Choosing Accommodation in Costa Rica
Looking back, the places I remember most aren’t necessarily the most expensive ones.
They’re the ones where I woke up to monkeys, drank coffee while watching toucans, or ended the day listening to jungle sounds outside the window.
Those are the momentsI remember when I think about Costa Rica.
Pura Vida
